COVID-19 and the Environment: The Lasting Effects of a Pandemic

The world is entering a new era. Life as we know it may never be the same. Somehow, the words climate scientists have been telling us for years are finally weighing on us: humanity is entering a shift of monumental proportions because of climate change, the virus, and many other factors. The novel coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, leapt over 3.5 million cases worldwide by the end of April, and there is no cure in sight The global economy has already seen a tremendous downturn, and the United States government has injected over $2 trillion in stimulus to keep Americans on their feet amid rising unemployment rates. Many other countries have adopted modified stimulus packages to keep their economies afloat and global conflict and international issues seem to be put on the back burner as humanity struggles with the initial effects of the virus.

And while almost all of humanity has been locked in their homes or restricted to essential activities, spring has brought more than just blooming flowers. Across the globe, continents have been reporting a decline in greenhouse gas emissions, as commuting by automobile and plane has drastically decreased due to Safe at Home mandates and travel bans. It’s estimated that levels of pollution in New York have decreased by nearly 50% compared to this time last year. In China, the epicenter of the pandemic, emissions fell 25% at the beginning of the year, and the proportion of days with “good quality air” has gone up 11.4% compared to the same time last year.

Many people are taking to social media with telling images of increased air quality, cleaner streets, and brilliant parks untouched by humans. The cover image of this article is Los Angeles in December 2019, a stark comparison to the clear blue views that have been shared online through April 2020. This time last year, Los Angeles was ranked “The Smoggiest City in America”, a title that it’s held for the last 20 years, and the 10th most polluted city in the world. Air quality in Los Angeles reached an all time low last year, as experts feared the worst for citizens in terms of long term health and overall environmental safety. But now, with millions of drivers off the road, Los Angelenos and many other people around the world have had the chance to breathe clean air for the first time in a long time. 

The European Environment Agency (EEA) has reported declines in nitrogen dioxide (NO2) levels across the continent due to urban shutdowns related to COVID-19. Italy has reported some of the largest drops in pollutant levels, which can be paralleled to the fact that Italy has some of the strictest lockdown mandates, with thousands of Italians paying fines and even facing imprisonment. Although Italy had an overwhelming amount of reported deaths disproportionate to the rest of the world in the early stages of their quarantine, their death rate has finally seen a small decline due to social distancing measures. There have also been reports of nature taking back their cities, as rare sightings of wild boar and other creatures roam the streets of abandoned Tuscan cities. 

It could be considered profoundly insensitive to count all of the positives of a global pandemic when the death toll continues to increase and millions of people are unemployed. Especially since the environmental benefits may not last. Once the pandemic subsides, industry will resume, cars will be back on the roads, planes in the sky; even though life as we know it will never be the same, life will resume. And with it comes the same destructive behaviors. After the 2008 financial crisis, overall emissions decreased 1.3%, and then leapt back up to an all time high in 2010. This current decrease in emissions is likely to be met by an increase when quarantine is over, despite the fact that many industries have been adopting strict emission regulations.

Some experts have a more positive outlook on how we can use this time of crisis as a jump-start to a new era of economic development and environmental conservation. “Humanity has an unprecedented opportunity to a carbon-neutral and nature-positive global economy,” says Khatri and Zhu in their article “How China Can Take the Lead on Protecting Nature after COVID-19.” In early April, 500 of the world’s leading business-people, government officials and scholars met at the virtual World Economic Forum’s Chinese Business Roundtable (CBR) to discuss economic measures needed to sustain the global economy through the pandemic and how to recover after it is over. 

China has come to a profound conclusion regarding the relationship between capitalism and the environment; President Xi stresses that “the environment itself means the economy. If you protect the environment, you will receive rewards from the environment.” This statement comes after a study was performed to relate China’s GDP to nature-dependent sectors. The study concluded that 20% of China’s GDP is highly dependent on nature, 38% is medium dependent, and 41% is low dependent. 

When the world sat down and manifested the Paris Agreements in 2016, we were already reporting irreparable damage to the environment. Many countries and corporations made promises to enforce their emissions plans beginning in 2020. Is this pandemic an opportunity for sustainable growth, or a sharp blow to progress? Perhaps it is both, as countries adopt proponents of green capitalism to offset corporations pulling funding for sustainable practices. Only time will tell what the full effects of this pandemic will have on humanity, and on the environment.

Works Cited

“Air Pollution Plummets amid COVID-19 Outbreak.” Autovista Group, 26 Mar. 2020, autovistagroup.com/news-and-insights/air-pollution-plummets-amid-covid-19-outbreak.

Chiland, Elijah. “Los Angeles Named Smoggiest U.S. City.” Curbed LA, Curbed LA, 24 Apr. 2019, la.curbed.com/2019/4/24/18514407/los-angeles-smoggiest-city-america.

Henriques, Martha. “Will Covid-19 Have a Lasting Impact on the Environment?” BBC Future, BBC, 27 Mar. 2020, www.bbc.com/future/article/20200326-covid-19-the-impact-of-coronavirus-on-the-environment.

Khatri, Akanksha, and Chunquan Zhu. “How China Can Take the Lead on Protecting Nature after COVID-19.” World Economic Forum, 7 Apr. 2020, www.weforum.org/agenda/2020/04/covid-19-china-nature-risks-environmental-protection/.

Reed, William. “Los Angeles December 2019 vs. April 2020.” Facebook, Facebook, 15 Apr. 2020, https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10158580001728109&set=a.10150490862413109&type=3&theater.

Romero, Luiz. “More than 100,000 People Have Been Caught Defying Italy's Lockdown.” Quartz, Quartz, 24 Mar. 2020, qz.com/1824240/thousands-are-paying-fines-for-defying-italys-coronavirus-lockdown/.

Zhenhuan, Ma, and An Baijie. “Xi Stresses Green Model of Growth.” Enapp.chinadaily.com.cn, 1 Apr. 2020, enapp.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202004/01/AP5e83ceada3103a24b110d1e7.html?from=timeline&isappinstalled=0.